Malaysia Airlines will begin downsizing its international operations from August, in preparation of its transformation into a new company on September 1 (see news, June 1).
The carrier is reducing the number of flights it makes from its base in Kuala Lumpur to Brisbane, Guangzhou, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Manila, Perth, Siem Reap, Taipei Taoyuan and Yangon.
The proposed changes are:
Brisbane – Once daily service to be cancelled from August 9; MH134/135 cancelled
Guangzhou – Existing twice-daily service will be reduced to once daily from August 15; MH380/381 cancelled
Ho Chi Minh City – Existing four-times daily service will be reduced to thrice daily from August 15; MH760/761 cancelled
Hong Kong – From August 1 to 14, MH72/73 will be operated by the single aisle B737-800 instead of the widebody B777-200ER; on August 15, the four-times daily service will be reduced to thrice daily; MH448/449 cancelled
Male – Once daily service to be cancelled from August 23; MH176/177 cancelled
Manila – Five-times daily service reduced to four-time daily from August 15; MH708/709 cancelled
Perth – Service reduced from 12 to seven weekly from August 15; MH127/126 cancelled
Siem Reap – Service reduced from seven times to five times weekly from August 17; MH764/765 reduced
Taipei Taoyuan – Twice-daily service reduced to once daily from August 15; MH408/409 cancelled
Yangon – Service reduced from 14 to 11 times weekly from August 18; MH740/741 reduced
Malaysia Airlines has closed reservations for the aforementioned flights, with bookings no longer accepted.
***Updated: Further reductions have been announced***
Denpasar – From August 15, MH851/850 will be operated by the single aisle B737-800 instead of the widebody B777-200ER; MH715/714 will also see a change to the 737 starting September 1.
Paris – Daily A380 service will be replaced by a B777-200ER from August 4; first class will no longer be offered on this route.
Shanghai – Existing twice-daily service will be reduced to once daily from August 18; MH386/387 cancelled.
Clement Huang